Nanos on fire, Tatas may order audit

In what is surely the first blemish ever since wonder car Tata Nano started rolling on the roads, Tata Motors today said it may order a pre-emptive audit check of all 7,500 Nanos despatched so far, taking into account the three incidents of the car catching fire in the last one month.

In what is surely the first blemish ever since wonder car Tata Nano started rolling on the roads, Tata Motors today said it may order a pre-emptive audit check of all 7,500 Nanos despatched so far, taking into account the three incidents of the car catching fire in the last one month.

A Nano caught fire in Ahmedabad last month followed by two similar incidents in Lucknow and Delhi yesterday that put serious doubts on the safety aspect of the vehicle.

Delhi-based Sunil Kumar Panwanda claimed his daughter parked the car outside his home early afternoon on Tuesday but the car was on fire after three hours. Panwanda is livid with the company.

“I had bought the car for my children and they are now terrified of driving it," he told TV channel CNBC TV18. "I want the company to refund my money and take back the vehicle."

Ahmedabad's Ravindra Bhagat had a similar experience and is now of the belief that a bigger car is better.

“I bought the car because Ratan Tata drove and introduced it. I thought this small car will be convenient for daily use in the city. Now, I feel it is better to drive a big car. Even if I get a replacement, I will not accept it,” he told the channel.

But the company played down the incidents saying there was no technical or design fault with the car but only short circuits.

“The car in New Delhi is still not available with us but the cars in Lucknow and Ahmedabad have been repaired and there was just a short circuit in the car's combination switch area," Tata Motors spokerperson Debasis Ray told HT.

"There is no question of recalling any of the cars as there is no technical or design fault with the car. This is not a generic problem,” he added.